Ments



April 9, 1929.

R. L. PLUMLEY IETEOD OF AND APPARATUS FOR REPAIRING FABRICS Filed Aug. 2, 1928 I5 Sheets-Sheet. l

awuwtoz 77am M WM Fay/n and 3513/76 aWM ybS J April 9, 1929. R. L. PLUMLEY 1,703,531

METHOD OF AND APPARATUS FOR REPAIRING FABRICS Filed Aug. 2, 1928 s Sheets-Sheet 2 avwcwtoz mandl. P/

April 9, 1929. R. L. PLUMLEY 1,703,681

METHOD OF AND APPARATUS FOR REPAIRING FABRICS Filed 1m 2, 1928 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 avwmtoz Patented Apr. 9, 19129.

UNITED s'ra'rss PATENT OFFICE.

RAYMOND L. PLUMLEY, OF BROOKLYN, NEV YORK, .ASSIG'NOR, BY MESNE ASSIGN- MENTS, TO GOTHAM KNEETBAC MAGHFJHE CORPORATION, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., A

CORPORATION OF DELAWARE.

METHOD OF All!) APPAEA'IFUS FOE REPAIRING FABRICS.

Application filed August Q, 1928.

This inventionv relates to an apparatus for repairing fabrics and more particularly for re iairing runs, ravels, dropped stitches and the like in knitted goods, such as hosiery, i'inderwear and like articles.

An object of this invention is to provide an apparatus which enables the repair of knitted fabrics to be effected quickly, easily and automatically without requiring; the expenditure of tedious toil, care, or skilled attention on the part of the operator.

A further object is to provide a simple, efficient, and easily constructed and operated apparatus of this nature for the purpose referred to and which .lSBCOIlOIlllGELl to main ufacturc and reliable in operation.

Other objects of this invention involve the elimination and simplification of several of the parts of a fabric repairing; machine of the type disclosed in the copending application, Serial No. 248,806, filed January 23, 1928, of Samuel B. Leavin and l filliam H. Leavin.

Other objects of this invention will appear from the following disclosure.

This invention consists sul'istantially in the combination, construction, arrangement and relative location of parts, all as will be more fully set forth as illustrated in the accompanying drawings and finally pointed. out in the appended claims.

Referring, to the accompanying drawings in which the same or similar parts have been referred to in the various views by the same reference numerals,-

Figure 1 is a side elevational view with 301116 1321118 in cross section of one form of apparatus cmphiying the principles of this invention iiin'. 2 is an enlargeil side elevatioi'uil view of the head showing the apparatus for controlling the presser foot;

Fig. 3 an enlarged cross sectional view taken on the line 33 of Fig. 4i looking); in the direction of the arrows;

Fig. 4- 'is a top plan view of an enlarged portion of the device showing the drawing' roll of the toothed spacer wheels;

5 is a f1 elevational iew of the (was with seine parts way Serial No. 296,968.

shmvingthe drawing rolls and spacer wheels in vertical cross sectional View;

F 6 is an enlarged side View of the teeth formation of the spacer wheels;

F 7 is an. enlarged side elevational View of a modified form of presser foot construction;

Fin. 8 is a side elevational view of a different form of presser foot and a friction roller engaging;- the feed rollers; and

i 1g. 9 is a front elevational' View of the construction of Fig. 8 with the presser foot removed to show the construction of the friction roller.

The general purpose of the present invention involves the elimination and simplification of various elements of the fabric repairing: apparatus disclosed in the copending application referred to above.

In general this apparatus involves a machine which is adapted to efficiently and rapidly repair runs, ravels, dropped stitches, or the like occurrin in knitted fabrics with out leaving any line or mark to indicate that the fabric has been repaired.

By means of this device it is possible to repair articles made from knitted fabrics in which runs, ravels, dropped stitches, or the like have occu red in a simple, efiicient expeditious, economic, and automatic manner without requiring any special skill on the part of the operator using the machine.

By means of this machine it is proposed to successively pick up and form a loop in each successive thread of the fabric which extends transversely across the run, ravel, or the like to be repaired and to interengage the successive loops each with the next succeeding one, the fabric being advanced step by step in predetermined time relation to the loop forming operation, the successive transverse threads being); properly spaced and presei'ited in. such spaced relation to form the loops and to permit one loop to intcrengage with the next succeeding one, the entire operation being accomplished automatically in the several steps thereof.

For a better understanding of the features f l is invntion reference is now made to "a wl-iieh the mac.

as shown Lil and a belt 7 a flywheel 9 and the shaft 8v secured thereto. The shaft 8 isjournalled in the standard 2. Secured to the shaft 8 is the eccentric cam 10 which causes the vertical oscillation of arm 11 pivotally attached to a collar 12 which slidably fits over the end the arm 14 mounted on the pivot 10 within the arm 3.

A set screw 13 is provided for attaching the collar 12 at any cesired point on the arm 14. A cover 16 is provided foran opening in the top of the arm 3 through which access may be had to the mechanism within the arm. The outer liree end of he arm 3 is provided with a hollow head 17 in which is mounted the vertically slidable rod 18 which is normally held in depressed posi tion by means of the spring 19 and the adjusting thumb screw 20. Attached to the lower end of the red 18 is a presse'r foot mechanism coi'nprising a vertical portion 21 and a horizontal bifurcated portion 70.

V A hollow rod 22 is arranged to be vert'- cally slidabl'e in the head 17 and serves to enclose a vertically. slidable rod 23 which has pivotally attached to the upper end the cam 24, by means of which the rod 23 may be raisedcagainst the action of spring 25 which lies bewveen the lower end of rod 22 and the head 26 on the lower end of rod 23. The head 26 is provided with a thumb screw 26 by means of which a needle 27 is detachably secured thereto. Attached to the vertically slidable rod 22 is a projection 28 which engages the ball shaped end of lever 14. The vertically slidable rod 18 is provided with a transversely extending pin 29 which extends to a point exterior of the casing 17 through a removable plate 30 as clearly shown in Fig. 2.

Pivotally supported on the thumb screw 32 is a hand operated cam member 31 which. permits of holding the vertically slid-able rod 18 in either oi two positions. Pivotally supported at 34 on the side arm 3 is an oscillating arm 33 to which is attached at one end a rod or other suitable operating member35 by means of which the free end of arm 33 may be raised toengage pin 29 to raise the rod 18.

A second eccentric cam 36 is attached to the shaft 8 and serves to vertically 0scillate the arm 36 which is pivotally attached to the collar 37 having a sliding fit with the arm 39 pivotally supported at 40 within the arm 4. A; set screw 38 is employed for securing the collar 37 in. any desired position on arm The cover 44 permits of access to the mechanism ofthe arm 4 when re moved. As shown in Fig. 3 the needle 27 in a preferred form is provided with a hook 41 and a latch member 42 for a purpose which has been clearly set forth in my copending application indicated above.

The outer end of arm 4 1S forked to provide two parallel portions 45, as is clear in wheel or wheels which cooperate with the fingers 70 on the presser foot 21 for the purpose of feeding the fabric being repaired at a predetermined rate to the needle. Overlying each side of the feeder wheel and provided with rounded edges are the cupped shaped. cap members 53.

The ratchet wheel 47, the spacer wheels 42,

and the feeding wheels 43, are held together as a single unit by means of screws 54-. The

cap members 53 are attached to this structure by means of screws 54 to unite the whole into a unitary member mounted for rotation on the shaft 46.

Referring to Figs. 3 and 4, the pawl43 is shown pivotally mounted on the arm 39 and held against the ratchet wheel 47 by means of the leaf spring 49. Pivot'ally mounted on the lower surface ofarm 4 is a second pawl 50 which is resiliently held against the ratchet wheel 47 by the le'ar spring 51. The purpose or the pawl 50 is to prevent back lashing or counter rotation of the unit which is rotatably mounted on shaft 46. Formed on the cap members 53 are the ears or lugs 55 between which extends a transverse pin 56. p

The lugs or cars 55 in connectionwith the pin 56 form a stripper member for removing of the teeth on the spacer wheels 42 at the.

point where the needle operates one at a line and in a step by step movement.

As is clear in Fig. 6, the teeth on the spacer wheels 42 are provided with a vertical side 42. and a curved side 42 which curves in a direction opposite to the direction or rotation of the spacer wheel and, hence in the same direction as that in which the fabric is stretched or pulled by the operator in positioning the threads of the fabric in the teeth of the spacer.

The presser foot construction shown in Fig. 7 has been found to produce a better appearing fabric after .it has been repaired than can be produced with the presser foot construction shown in Fig. 3. In Fig. 7 the feeder wheel is shown at l3 and the presser foot is shown comprising the vertical straight portion 21 and a. right angled portion 100 which is bifurcated. The lower surface of the prcsser foot is cut away for a short distance as shown at 101. The cut away portion extends from the point where the arms 100 connect on to the portion 21 to a pointjust to the rear of the needle, the position of which has been indicated by the vertical dotted line. The advantage of this construction is that the fabric is held against the feeder wheel 13 on each side of the knitting needle for a short distance so that the fabric is held in proper position for repairing operation. The cut away portion of the presscr foot frees the fabric a sufficient amount so that the threads after the knitting operation may spring or rebound back into natural position to prevent the formation of a line indicating where the repair had been made. The presser foot is cut away sufficiently to permit of the fabric assuming its natural position without freeing it suf ficiently so that it may raise up from the feeder wheels.

In the other modification shown in Figs. 8 and 9 the vertically slidable rod 18 serves to support a presser foot 102 and an arm 103 on-the end of which is mounted a roller 104. In this form of construction the presser foot much shorter and merely extends to the part which contracts with the feeder wheel 53 for a short distance on each side of. the needle to properly hold the fabric during the looping operation. The presser foot then serves more to hold the fabric in place than to aid in feeding, as in the form shown in Fig. 3. The friction roller 104; is con structed with an annular groove as shown at .105 so as to provide a recess in which the spacer wheels 42 may move. The friction roller engages the feeder wheels 13 on each side of the spacer wheels and serves to cause the fabric to firmly engage the roughcued surface of the feeder wheels 43. As a result the fabric firmly held and positively fed past the needle by the cooperation between the feeder wheels 43 and the friction roller 10%.

The best practice in repairing the run in a knitted fabric is to start the repair operation from the point where the run stops so that the run is repaired in the direction and up to the point where it began. The pres out machine condenses quite extensively the casing at the place of operation of the needle, reduces it into more or less circular form producing a compactness which greatly facilitates the handling of the fabric, particularly where it must be reversed. when repairing runs starting at one point and running toward the too as compared with runs starting at the toe and running up.

By reason of the substantially circular construction of the spacing of the feeder wheels and the compactness thereof it is possible to easily effect the reversing operation so that the run may be repaired from the point where it endsback to the point where it started regardlcssof the point of starting. With this idea in mind the fabric is placedupon the spacer wheel 42 with the threads of the fabric extending transversely of the run lying so that the transverse threads lie between the teeth one thread at a time. The presser foot 21 is then dropped down to engage the top of the fabric and firmly plant it against the roughened surface of the feed wheel 43, the vertical movement of the presser foot 21 being eifectec as will be apparent by either manually moving the cam 31 to the position shown in Fig. 2 or by effecting a downward movement of the free end of lever 35 so as to move it out of engagement with the pin 29.

The fly-wheel 9 is then rotated by hand. until the needle 27 descends into the right position and the motor 6 may then be operated to drive the machine. It may be noted here that the actual olnn'ations of the needle to effect repair are not pointed out here in detail in view of the fact that they have been clearly and carefully set forth in great detail in the copending application referred to above.

The operation of motor 6 causes rotation of shaft 8 the oscillation of levers 39 and 14 in an obvious manner. The oscillation of arm 14 causes the vertical movement of rod 22, and hence the needle 27, to effect the knitting operation. At the same time the oscillation of arm 39 through pawl 18 and ratchet wheel l7 causes a step by step rotation of the feeding wheels 43 and the spacer wheel 42. As a result, upon each descent of the needle 27 the fabric is fed thereto step by step so that the needle may descend between the threads extending transversely of the run in surcession. As the repaired fabric is fed towards the rear of the machine it is disengaged from the feeder wheels by means of the strirmer bar 56. When the fabric is repaired the presser foot is raised and it may then be removed from the machine.

Some of the particular improvements in this device over anything heretofore known of this type and which particularly distinguishes it from the machine shown in the copending application of William H. Lea-Vin and Samuel B. Leavin, Serial No. 248,806, filed Jan. 23, 1928, will now be specifically referred to.

It may be noted at this point that there also is disclosed in the c'opeiiding applica-' tion of Samuel B. Lcavin and William H. Leavin, Serial No. 293,480, filed July 17, 1928, a form of needle which may be used in this machine but which, of course, the invention is not limited to and another form is disclosed in the copending application of Richard K. Hohmann, Serial Number 29(5, 909, filed August 2, 1928. i

In this arrangement the presser foot is mounted directly upon the vertically slidable rod 18 without employing the yoke therebetween. The presserfoot mechanism has been mounted in back of the needle 27. The mechanism for lifting the presser foot has been modified and arranged for operation'by hand or by means of a knee or foot operated lever. The feed and spacer wheels have been united into a single unit which considerably simplifies the device. The outside diameter of the feed wheels is substan tially equal to the diameter of the base of the teeth on the separating wheels. The presser foot extensions have been curved to substantially conform with the curvature of the feeder wheels and exert a gripping action on the fabric to hold the same in contact with the feeder wheels. By means of this arrangement the fabric is fed forward instead of being pulled or drawn forward, as was the case in the arrangement where the feeder wheels were mounted in back of the needle. This simplifies the structure and eliminates the cause of various unnecessary parts and at the same time makes a neater and more compact apparatus. In the other form of device disclosed in the copending case of lVilliam H. Leavin and Samuel B. Leavin, Serial No. 248,806, referred to above there was no certainty that the transverse threads would uniformly engage in successive teeth of the spacer wheel or would occupy a centered position when engaged thereby. This has-a tendency to cause irregularities by failure of the needle to properly loop each succeediingthread; Then this occurs rough spots or blanks in the fabric along the line of repair would appear.

This objection is overcome in the present device by enlarging the diameter of the two spacer wheels and thereby securing a more extended peripheral surface over which the operator can quite easily and properly space the cross threads of the fabric so as to engage each cross thread in a tooth of the spacer wheel and engage the cross thread in each succeeding serration of the sp cer wheel before the fabric reaches the point of operation of the needle. The provision of a larger diameter of feeder wheels likewise aids in tastin the operator to properly a feet. are accomplishthis purpose it is m position the, fabric with reference to the spacer wheels in advance of the action of the needle. This new arrangement also insures that each cross thread is maintained parallel with the cross threads both in advance and to the rear of it since the portions of the fabric lying on each side of the spacer Wheels are advanced by the enlarged feed rollers cooperating with the planting action of the presser foot at equal speeds. This enables the repair of a double or a plurality of runs at the same point in a fabric with the assurance of uniformityin the work bypro-pcrly positioning the fabric for each repair operation or for each run. The enlarged diameters of the feed wheels and the spacer wheels in the reconstructed machine contributes to this result as they enable the oporator after completing the repair of one of f the runs to again run the fabric through the machine with the cross thread maintained in uniform relation for each succeeding run and operation.

In the present form of the device the pawl which causes the rotation of thespacer teeth operates on a separate ratchet wheel and thus eliminates the objectionable feature which occurred in the other type of machine where the pawl operated directly on the spacer teeth of tending to dull, Wear, or injure the spacer teeth. The teeth of the spacer wheel have been specially shaped, as indicated in Fig. 6, so that the operator may preliminarily place the cross threads of the fabric in siurc'eeding teeth of the spacer wheel by drawing the fabric forwardly over the spacer wheel teeth. The teeth are so shaped that this may be done without causing injury to the fabric and are also shaped so that the transverse threads fall readily, one

only the function of spacing the transverse threads and the feeder wheels perform only the function of feeding the fabric in the correct manner to the needle. This prevents injury to the fabric and greatly facilitates the workof the operator in properly positioning the fabrics, insuring a proper feed and the formation of complete loops for each 7 actuation of the needle and thereby eliminates spots and faults in the repaired article.

In order to prevent the formation of a perceptible line when a run is repaired, which is sometimes due to the tautness of the fabric at the point where the looping is formed, it is desirable to provide a certain amount of looseness in the fabric at the point immediately beyond or to the rear of the point of operation of the needle, without, however,- impairing the efficiency of the clamping action of the presser foot before or in front of the needle and. at the extremity or the rear portion of the presser posed to cut away a portion of the under surface of the presser foot arms commencing at a point immediately to the rear of the needle and extending part way towards the rear of the presser foot arms. This will afford a desirable range and flexibility of the loosened fabric which will enable the threads of the fabric to rebound or become restored to their original state after the looping operations are completed and this willeliminate the visible line which might otherwise occur.

I am well aware that many changes in the details of construction and relative arrangement of parts will readily occur to those skilled in the art without departing from the principles of this invention. For instance the ratchet wheel need not lie between the spacer wheels, although in the form shown there is produced. a more balanced structure. Likewise, a suitable saddle or table may be provided adjacent the spacer and feeding wheels on either side thereof or entirely si'lrrounding them so as to provide a support for the work as well as a support for guiding the operators hand if this is desired.

I do not, therefore, desire to be limited to the exact structure shown for purposes of illustration but rather to the scope of the appended. claims.

\Vh'at I seek to secure by United States Letters Patent is:

1.. In an apparatus for repairing runs in knitted fabric, means for forming a loop in each fabric thread which crosses the run to be repaired, means to. draw each suc- 'cessive loop through the loop formed in the preceding cross thread. under substantially constant tension, means for firmly holding the fabric during the looping operations, and a support therefor located entirely to the rear-of said loop fori'ning means.

2. In an apparatus for repairing runs in knitted fabric, a support having two arms formed thereon, a head on one of said arms, a vertically movable means in said head for forming a loop in each fabric thread which crosses the run to be repaired, means for advancing the fabric under uniform tension and a vertically movable presser foot device mounted in said head and arranged directly above said advancing means and adjacent said loop forming means, said presser foot having a right angled bifurcated portion forming spaced arms between which said loop forming member operates.

3. In an apparatus for repairing runs in knitted fabrics, a hollow body member having, two parallel arms formed integral therewith, one of said arms having a head thereon, vertically movable means in said head for forming a loop in each fabric thread which crosses the run to be repaired, said means operating to draw each successive loop through the loop formed in the preceding cross thread, rotatable means on the other of said parallel arms for maintaining the cross threads in spaced relation, means engaging the fabric in advance of said loop forming means for feeding the fabric to the latter, and a presser foot mechanism for firmly holding the fabric against said feeding means, said loop forming means being in front of said presser foot mechanism with respect to the direction of movement of the fabric during its feeding operation.

4. In an apparatus for repairing runs in knitted fabrics, means for forming the loop in each fabric thread which crosses the run to be repaired, said means operating to draw each successive loop through the loop formed in the preceding cross thread, means engaging the fabric in advance of the loop forming means for feeding the fabric to the latter, means for firmly holding the fabric on the feeding means, means which may be manually operated for vertically moving the means for holding the fabric on the feeding means, and additional means com prising a pivoted lever for operating said means for vertically moving said holding means.

5. In an apparatus for repairing runs in knitted fabrics, combined spacing and feeding wheels assembled into a unitary rotatable structure to uniformly space apart the successive fabric threads which cross the run to be repaired, and hold and feed the fabric under uniform tension, means to form loops in the spaced apart threads in succcssive order, and means to draw each loop through the loop formed in the preceding cross thread. i

6. In an apparatus for repairing runs in knitted fabrics, combined spacing and feeding wheels assembled into a unitary rotatable structure to uniformly space apart the successive fabric threads which cross the run to be repaired, and hold and feed the fabric under uniform tel'ision, means to form loops in the spaced apart threads in successive order, means to draw each loop through the loop formed in the preceding cross thread, and means for firmly pressing the fabric against said combined unitary structure.

7. A unitary structure for use in an apparatus for repairing runs in knitted fabrics comprising two toothed wheels for uniformly spacing. the successive fabric threads which cross the run to be repaired, a 'atchet wheel mounted between said toothed wheels, feeding means comprising two wheels with roughened peripheries one disposed on each side of said toothed wheels, and means for holding all of said elements together in a unitary structure.

8. A unitary structure for use in an apparatus for repairing runs in knitted fabrics comprising two toothed wheels for uni formly spacing the successive fabric threads which cross the run to be repaired, a ratchet wheel mounted between said toothed wheels, feeding means comprising two wheels with roughened peripheries, one disposed on each fabric threadwhich crosses the run to be repaired, and to draw eachsuccessive loop through the loop formed in the preceding cross thread, a presser foot mechanism mounted on the arm on which the loop forming means is mounted, and a rotatable unitary member mounted onthe other of said arms comprising means to uniformly space apart the. successive fabric threads which cross the run to be repaired, and also comprising means for feeding the fabric to the loop'forming means, said presser foot mechanism cooperating with said feeding means to firmly hold the fabric adjacent the point of operation of said loop forming means.

10. In an apparatus for repairing runs in knitted fabrics, a hollow body member having two horizontal parallel arms, means on one of said arms. for. farming a loop in each fabric. thread which crosses the run to be repaired, and to draw each successive loop I through the. loop formed in the preced ng cross thread, a presser foot mechanism.

mounted on the on which the loop form ing means is mounted, a rotatable unitary memberv mounted on the other of said arms comprising means to uniformly space apart the successive fabric threads which cross the run to be repaired, and also connprising means for feeding the fabric to the loop forming means,-said presser foot mechanism cooperating with said nitaiy feeding means to firmly. hold the fabric adjacent the point of operation of said loop forming means,

i and means. within said hollow body members for vertically operatin said loop forming means and for rotating said unitary spacing and feeding means.

11. In an apparatus for repairing runs in knitted fabrics, a body member having two I fabric to the loop forming means, said means 12. A unitary structure for use in an apparatus for repairing runs in knitted comprising two toothed wheels for u111-.

formly spacing the successive fabric threads which cross the run to be repaired, a ratchet wheel mounted between said toothed wheels, feeding means comprising two wheels with ranighened peripheries one disposed on each side of said toothed wheel s, means for holding all of said elements together in a unitary structure, and means forming part of the unitary structure for stripping the fabric from the feeding means.

13. In a machine for repairing runs in knitted fabrics, the combination comprising a hollow body member having two parallel arms formed thereon, a vertically operating needle holding member mounted on one of said arms, a rotatably unitary thread sep: arating and fabric feeding means mounted on the other of said arms, and adapted to. hold the fabric under uniform tension, and mechanism within said hollow body member for operating said needle holding member and for rotating the said unitary thread separating and fabric feeding means. I

14:. In a machine for repairing runs in knitted fabrics, the combination conipris ing a hollow body member having two. pan allel arms formed thereon, a vertically aeting needle holding member mounted on one of said arms, a rotatable unitary thread separating and fabric feeding means mounted on the other of said arms, and adapted to, hold. the fabric under uniform tension, mechanism within said hollow body member operating said needle holding member and for. rotating the said unitary thread'separating and fabric feeding means, means for. firmly holding the fabric against said feed ing. means, and means for freeing the fabric from said feeding-means after it passes saidholding means.

15. In a machine for. repairing runs in knitted fabrics, a spacer wheel and means to rotatively operate the same, said spacer wheel comprising a circular bod-y portion having teeth formed on its entire periphery, each of said teeth being adapted to engage and. separate the cross threads and having one edge thereof in the form of a straight line and the other edge in the form of a uniformly curved line extending in a direction opposite to that in which the wheel moves when in operat on.

16. In a mach ne for repair ng. runs in knitted fabrics, a spacer wheel comprising a body portion provided with a series of teeth on its periphery, eachv tooth being provided with one straight edge and one uniformly curved edge and adapted to engage and separate the cross threads.

17. In the method of repairing a run in knitted fabrics, the step which comprises engaging the fabric and transverse threads of? the run in advance of the loop forming op- 10 erat-ion to uniformly space, tension and progress the fabric and the threads of the run being repaired.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto setmy hand on this twenty seventh day of July 1 A. D, 1928.

RAYMOND L. PLUMLEY. 

